Glow in the dark

[Davy Crockett]

Has anyone had better luck with glow in the dark jigs ? I don't remember ever catching a fish with them.

 

[Rowdie]

I use glow floating jigheads shore fishing all the time.

 

[Eatsleeptrap]

Absolutely yes.

 

[1lessdog]

I used the Genz Fatboys and Worms glow in the dark for yrs. I used then in the early morning for Crappies and at times I think they would out fish the regular jigs.

 

[NDSportsman]

Yep crappies love them. Charge them with a camera flash.

 

[Traxion]

Glow red for sure. Glow white seems better. Any other colors not so much.

 

[riverview]

yes

 

[Kurtr]

Glow buck shot are one of my favorites

 

[wslayer]

Yes and they have Glo Rings made for Vexilar

 

[Lycanthrope]

any tried shining UV light through the ice or down a hole to keep glow jigs/lures always glowing? This would also allow the use of fluorescent colors that arent GLOW paint specifically.
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The scientific consensus from fisheries biologists, In-Fisherman articles, and vision studies is that walleye do not directly see ultraviolet (UV) light itself. Unlike some species (e.g., many trout, salmon in certain life stages, or juvenile yellow perch), walleye lack dedicated UV-sensitive cones in their eyes. Their vision is optimized for low-light conditions with a high proportion of rod cells and cones sensitive primarily to longer wavelengths: peaking in orange-red-green, with good perception of yellow, but very poor sensitivity to blue/violet and essentially none to true UV (wavelengths below ~400nm).What Walleye Actually "See" from UV-Excited Glow JigsWhen you shine a UV light on a glow-in-the-dark or fluorescent jig:

• The jig absorbs the UV energy and re-emits it as visible light (usually bright green, blue-green, white, or chartreuse glow) through fluorescence/phosphorescence.
• This re-emitted visible light is well within walleye's detectable spectrum, so they perceive the jig as suddenly much brighter and more contrasting against the dark background.
• It's the glow/flourescence they see and respond to—not the UV rays themselves.

This is why UV-charged or UV-enhanced jigs often outperform standard ones in low-light scenarios (like under thick ice/snow or at twilight/night), even though walleye can't detect the incoming UV directly. Reliable sources like In-Fisherman emphasize this distinction: UV brighteners help lures fluoresce and appear brighter when there's any UV present to excite them, but walleyes don't perceive UV wavelengths.Quick Comparison of Fish Vision

• Species that can see UV directly (have UV cones): Trout, salmon (especially juveniles/smolt), some perch, many shallow-water or plankton-feeding fish.
• Walleye & similar predators (no UV cones): Bass, pike, muskies, sauger, catfish— they benefit from fluorescence but not direct UV detection.

In practice for ice fishing: Shining UV down the hole supercharges the jig's visible glow, which can draw walleye in effectively (as many anglers report), but the fish are reacting to that bright visible emission, not the UV beam. If the UV source is too intense/direct, it might still spook them due to overall brightness, but the UV part itself is invisible to them.Bottom line: Walleye only see the enhanced glow created by the jigs under UV—not the UV light. That's the key mechanism making UV-charged glow jigs so popular! Tight lines!

 

[guywhofishes]

any tried shining UV light through the ice or down a hole to keep glow jigs/lures always glowing?

Penetration would be minimal (a foot or two at most).

Natural humic and fulvic acids absorb UV light and emit that energy a short time (nanoseconds later) as visible light.

Water from freshwater lakes/rivers highly fluorescent. Open ocean water is not.

 

[guywhofishes]

By the way, lures that continue to emit light (glow) long after excitation with a UV lamp are phosphorescing, not fluorescing.

It's all about the time aspect. Fluorescence occurs within a microsecond of excitation, while phosphorescence happens anywhere from a microsecond to many hours/days after excitation ends.

 

[guywhofishes]

I have often wondered why the wind-blown shoreline is the hot one for fish activity.

I suspect it's because only the top few feet of the lake is getting bio actively fueled by the sun (too much light gets absorbed to drive much bio-activity in deep water).

When the wind blows, it concentrates the upper few feet of water - and the planktonic life that lives in it - to the downwind shore.

Every fish from tiny minnows to the hogs that eat the medium size fish that eat the minnows/bugs follows this wind-driven concentration of chow.

 

[risingsun]

By the way, It's all about the time aspect. second to many hours/sessions after excitation starts and ends.

You been in the 50 shades book again????